(CNS): Financial Services Minister Wayne Panton finally managed to steer the Legal Practitioners Bill through the Legislative Assembly with support from both sides of the House Friday. Following the closed-door meeting of MLAs on Thursday, all of the members supported the legislation on its second reading, with just the Opposition Leader McKeeva Bush and East End MLA Arden McLean stating their ‘aye’ vote was conditional on the changes agreed being confirmed in the committee stage, which government hopes to get to sometime this week.

After weeks of angry allegations, bitter acrimonious debates and countless objections from the official and independent opposition, the parliament finally found common ground.

As he wound up the debate on the contentious piece of legislation to manage the legal profession in Cayman and pave the way to begin eliminating the discrimination and inequitable treatment of qualified and experience Caymanian lawyers, Panton said he hoped there would be further agreement on the law once the bill went through the committee stage process.

“None of us are going to get everything that was wanted on either side but it is critical to get the bill done,” he said, adding that he was pleased with the previous day’s talks, when most members participated in the day-long discussions. He said it was clear there was a “desire by most to work together and come to an agreement” about the bill.

He said that broadly, the government and the opposition had agreed that over the next ten years they wanted to see young Caymanians entering the profession receive the best training available and progress through the firms if they put the necessary work in.

The minister said that over the next 15 years, government expected to see the majority of local attorneys reaching the top, owning and controlling local firms. He said that the decision to force this issue was driven by the increase in the number of local lawyers who had been willing to outline the discrimination they have faced.

Panton said he agreed that Caymanians attorneys had to be offered the opportunities to properly progress if they worked hard and that this would be kept under review and make sure the new law has the positive effects that the parliament was looking for.

Comments (85)

The main reason foreigners come here is for a better life, to escape their mundane existences back home, and to enjoy the tropical, year round climate, whilst earning more or at least as much with tax free salaries.

Ignored losers become somebodies here and begin feeling important, then their narcassism which no one cared about back home makes them start feeling like they are doing Cayman a favour, and all of a sudden they think they can act like they run the place.

In the UK, Canada, States, the citizens of those countries always get priorities in education and jobs, obviously it is the country of which they are citizens and perhaps have invested and lived in for generations, no Canadian can go to the UK and expect to get a place at a university, training program, or job at the expense of any UK citizen with the same qualification whether of not their work ethic sucks. If the Candian doesnt like it they need to go back to Canada where they are citizens and treated with priority.

In this regard, if you dont like Caymanians getting priorities, defending their rights, getting into management positions where you work, competing with your job- then yes! Go home, pls do, go back to your miserable little apt infested with mice and rats, surrounded by traffic, a one hour commute, cold and rain, and much longer working hours taxed…dont act like you are here doing us favours, the favour is you have been allowed to live here to try and find a happier existence, but no you should not be more important than the citizens of this country.

Cayman truth you do not speak the truth. Canadians do not get priority for jobs over other people in Canada such as landed immigrants. They are on an equal basis for jobs. The only exception is employment in the Government of Canada. One must live 5 consecutive years in Canada before one can apply for Canadian citizenship. As for your point about Canadians not being able to get positions in British universities, poppycock. There are many Canadian teachers in top U.K. universities because they have a level of expertise and knowledge which is not available in the U.K. That is why they are appointed.

You might also be interested to know that the Governor of the Bank of England, Mark Carney, is Canadian. He got the job because he is one of the top economists in the world and the British Government felt he was better qualified than all the other British candidates. That is why they hired him.

Yes, Cayman truth, you may believe the merit principle sucks but believe it is time for you to get off this tiny beautiful island and see what the rest of the world is doing in terms of employment practices. Suspect your life has been too easy here living in that big luxury house of yours.

Actually I grew up all over the world, I was not born and raised here, but over the course of many years of living here, I have seen the injustice. I was not given the same education or employment rights in England as I am not British so i am speaking first hand, thanks for assuming because I am Caymanian I am ignorant and have never left this country- this is the problem right there

So if UK, US or Chinese firms do all the soft Cayman work they will now be able to do it more cheaply than the offshore firms affiliated to Cayman because of then imposition of work permit equivalence taxes out of what appears to be Trumpian theories?

totally agree – hence why you read about the amount of traffic violations, break-ins, selective payment of pension by hundreds of employers, circumvention of immigration laws and the list goes on and on……….

Cayman has no longer a compass – it’s a freefall society – everyone does whatever the hell they want.

Yes garfield weston why don’t you and your termite hoard find a piece of driftwood to eat instead trying to destroy the good tree Cayman because we may yet have to call the exterminator to deal with this infestation brought here to our shores.

This is just nonsense. We will work for it as each of you would have to. We are capable, willing and determined. Tell me, could we come to your country and set up a law firm owned 100% by caymanians? I highly doubt it. Every country has a duty to ensure opportunities for their people. That is what the opposition are trying to achieve. Anything we get will be earned but we will not allow you people to discriminate against us by picking people of your own skin colors and accents instead of us despite our talents outweighing yours.

Actually you could in the UK there are many overseas owned law firms.
In any case like 90% of companies in Cayman just needs the silent Caymanian with 60% ownership on paper.
It is happening all the time and every politician knows it. I also know that some of the most outspoken pro Caymanian people are quite happy to turn a blind eye and contract companies where this happens for there benefit.

Not true, but any investigation of the conduct of some may result in some driftwood potentially having to leave (of course, subject to and following any appropriate penalties or possible period of imprisonment).

WHO CARES?!?!?!? Sick and tired of bending over to these international concerns. 60/40 is required for every Caymanian business- law firms are already getting a reduced requirement. If they don’t like the laws they can leave and other firms will take their place in this tax free paradise.

so how does the UK regulate UK law practice by law firms in Tokyo for example? I would assume if the law firms are hiring a lawyer, it is up to them to verify that they are actually qualified to practice a certain law, and if not, the law firm is subject to criminal actions against them

The Golden Goose is our tax status. That is why these firms are here. When they talk about funnelling work what they actually mean is outsourcing it to cheaper jurisdictions but billing it as work undertaken on a Cayman matter for a Cayman partner thereby avoiding taxation in the foreign jurisdiction. They want to have their cake and eat it too. I don’t think it will take foreign authorities long to figure that trick out.

Clearly not…the workforce they use in other countries will be subject to the taxes on their salaries there and whatever else the local jurisdiction requires taxes for. So it is not tax free, however it may be cheaper than here.

Who are you ” oh dear[ing] ” matey? That phrase reminds me so much of a teacher from your country, who used it in a funny sense to his students to avoid cursing – and what a God send he was to us youngsters. However I am certain you are not viewed as any God send to your Caymanians colleagues.

Doesn’t scare us one bit, we can move on…and if you think this strengthens you, you really don’t get it and won’t get it until its gone. And then you will still be blaming us, whilst trying to find the income to fund all the social services you will need. I am more sad than anything else, sad for Cayman.

Another snake oil salesman. They went independent! They could no longer claim to have a stable political system. They lost themselves in the words of strongmen, like McKeeva, who are now dinosaurs. They made a bad decision. We aren’t going to repeat it but we are done hearing from the smart white man how grateful we should be to have him plundering our most profitable industry. We’ll take some of that money now thanks. Hand it over! End of story.

4;56 pm, if you can move on, shut up then and move on, planes leaving every day. You should be glad we let you come here and work and make plenty money, so if you don’t like Caymanians, then please LEAVE.

Actually, it will be fine, but if not it will all have gone wrong due to unscrupulous outsiders being allowed to breach our laws for years without any enforcement or due regard for the sustainability of the ongoing insults.

EVERY small country has to enforce laws to protect its people. There is plenty of Caymanian talent to take the realms. The reality is only Caymanians care about the long term sustainability of the Islands- everyone else is here for a chunk of the pie so they can run on home with it. There is nothing unusual about a country imposing local ownership requirements- it is done all over the world so just get over it already!

Would t have take. This long if the bill hadn’t been drafted by special interest groups and been such a pile of **** in the first place. Thanks goes to the opposition for not allowing panton to pass this nonsense bill into law!!

Thanks to Wayne for making the impossible happen again (see the Conservation law). However, this is the clearest indication yet that, had the opposition not rallied, Govt would have forced a pro-firm bill through so hats off to Winston and the members of the opposition – thank you for your service on this.

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